Prince and Misfortune
by VYLenLaySBLY
Summary: The Twins of Misfortune finally emerges. The snake wants to end the world, by any means possible. The lion just wants to end the war like everyone told him to do. The raven just wants to die, but not before he finishes what he started. He is always by his brother's side, even after what his brother did to him, after all this time and all this pain. All ways. Always.
1. Pre: Story

**Pre: Story**

**WARNING: This story may contain traces of: spoilers, tortures, memory loss, magical spells, AU after fifth year, swords, powerful spells, badly written but still very awesome duels, rambling author notes and anime ****references. Engage at your discretion.**

**THE OTHER WARNING: This author is currently very busy and suffers from severe cases of bad humor. Take the WARNING seriously, just not the author in general.**

* * *

There is a place. Somewhere. Where hourglass of time stands still, a prison disguised as a palace, where the sinners go. Where the unwanted go, to rot in peace, away from the innocent, where time stood still for them, to let them suffer for all eternity. It's a beautiful place, full of life and colors. Almost all tossed inside are hopeful at first, but quickly spiraled into madness after barely a day.

Children are rarely tossed in. They are a blank slate, a clean board, where their parents are the ones to write on them, to shape them, to teach them. Nothing is ever innocent, no matter what people claimed, though children came very close to it.

Yes, children are rarely seen in this place, full of screams and cries and cracked fists bounding on the heaving doors. Except for two, a pair that makes one. Twins

Twins of Misfortune.

The scapegoats the mad king and even madder subjects of the small poor country blamed at every wrong. They were princes once; the top of the class, their authority was only rivaled by the king's. They were shunned because they can do the one thing they can't do.

Magic.

Their mother, the queen of the country was a powerful witch, the descendant of the great Salazar Slytherin, she never wanted a child, and much less twins and she feared they would take away the king's potion induced love. She didn't want to share that poisoned love, so she was the first one to elude her children.

When the twins were born, when they started to show magic at the young age of four, wandless controlled magic, helping each other. Powerful children capable of great things, terrible things the kingdom saw instead.

They took away their names, took away their titles, took away their everything. Except for the very thing they hated them for, magic.

In the prison – palace they resided, they developed their magic, still wandless, the only thing that could entertain a pair of youngsters. They turned magic into an art form, invented new spells and new incantations that only they could voice. They were happy, for a time. They thought up new names for themselves, not wanting to remember the filth their so called parents gave them instead.

The oldest called himself Fai, like they eyes that was once a bright blue, now turned cold and crimson; like flying, the only thing he wondered what would be like. A malevolent child with no home, but a loving child as well. Ambitious and intelligent.

The youngest named himself Kai, admiring his brother, worshiping. A cold and unsympathetic child, not wanting to open his heart in fear of hurting it more.

Their magic reached its peak, the kingdom reached its doom. The king, power hungry, wanting to win the war, not caring about anything that stood in his way, only wanting victory, at all costs. His battalions are not enough to defeat the opposing side, but was too stubborn to surrender no matter how much his advisers screamed in the king's ear in between piles of papers.

He summoned whatever he could spare to the twin's palace, wanting only one to win his war, thinking how the one he chose would be so grateful to be away from that wretched hell-hole it would beg for its freedom on its knees. An 'it,' because demon children like them don't deserve to be on the same standing as them 'innocent' people.

He took the one with the cold black eyes, Kai, not caring and not anticipating the anguish its older brother would experience. He doesn't care about anyone else, only himself and his victory.

He tore Kai away from his brother, half ordering and half whipping the child to kneel before him, to fight for him, to love him as the father he never was and never wanted to be, to die for him. When Kai didn't relent, he threatened to kill him, to beat him, to make him into a mindless puppet that he would set upon the other demon child.

In a fit of rage, Kai released his magic, fueled by his hate; his brother's hate, and destroyed the country, and everyone in it, hating everything that sprawled the hill, the mountains, and the rivers.

He went to sleep then, replenishing his magic, waiting for Fai to break out of the prison he dragged so unceremoniously from, waiting for the reunion.

His brother did break through, the magic of the prison still lingered on him, stopping him from ageing as he pushed himself forward to find his little brother. Forever watching for a pair of obsidian black eyes.

* * *

"You know Hermione just because you got a book of children's fairytales doesn't mean you have to read each story out loud every single time we are alone." The redhead lounging against the wall shook his head, wanting desperately to focus on the Transfiguration essay he was unfortunately burdened with.

"They are not just fairytales, they are legends," the girl with the bushy brown hair and half a dozen books huffed indignantly.

"So what?"

"All stories are laced with truths, you might never know if the author actually hid some meaning behind them." Said the boy with the messy hair and the rounded glasses, skinny as a board.

"Wouldn't it be simply wonderful to meet one of the twins, and let them teach us their unique wandless magic! It would be so fascinating!" Two sets of groans were heard on either side of Hermione, which huffed in return. "Honestly, it would be a great experience, we could learn loads. Oh stop doing that Harry."

Their paths suddenly became cold, as if a weak dementor has infiltrated through the gazillion wards that surround Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, stopping the trio right in their tracks.

"You should not wander so close to the dungeons, I doubt anyone or anything that may reside down here would spare a thought before attacking the famous Golden Trio," voice silky, low and dangerous. Black robes and greasy hair, accompanied with slightly wet onyx eyes. He was well within ear shot of hearing the story about the twins, no one dared any more to spare a thought on how he could always appear instantly.

The trio nodded tensely, each holding their breath for fear of even more points abducted by the infamous dungeon bat. "And put that book away Miss Granger, and never speak of that story again. There is a reason it was cut out from the later editions."

With an inaudible sigh, the trio went back to their dormitories, half surprised the Potions Master did not take any points from their house. They could not afford to lose any more, with the Umbridge fiasco and all. One of them is muttering about a 'greasy git,' another shouting indignantly about the shame of wasting such a good book like this. Only one looked back.

Harry potter looked back towards the semi-dark corridor he and his friends just emerged from. He could clearly make out the still form of his third most hated professor, his long fingered hand over his suddenly young face, giving Harry a visible shake of his head, telling him to let this go.

The bat turned to go, leaving a frozen Harry Potter on the many staircases of Hogwarts. Frozen in shock.

He could hear the voice in his head that sounded so much like Snape's, silky, but younger, more melancholy. It whispered a phrase, a small spark of Legilimency, silently wishing for its brother, but also issuing a warning.

_Stay away…from us…stay away…to keep safe…_

He could hear Ron calling him, but not wanting to more. The memory of Snape in that corridor is seeped into his mind, storing for a later use, bringing the less than pleasant memory of the Chamber of Secrets up to front. He could never imagine that Snape could display so much of his emotions just through his eyes.

The same pair of eyes that mocked him time and time again, calling him names, insulting his grades. He could never forget those eyes. The same pair of eyes that was screwed shut in agony, in fear, in bright happiness that would never make it to adulthood in the memories Harry had managed to score in his nightly lessons of Occulumency. It was so cold now, so frightening to see.

That pair of black eyes.

* * *

**A/N: I think I dropped too many hints.**

**OK****, I recently got re-obsessed with Harry Potter after the whole tornado with the Helena Potter thing on this very site. I am more mature now and appreciates better fanfiction that has more angst and blood in them. This story should go for about 12-15 chapters, they are all planned out and most of them are already written, so the wait to update will not be that long. But still, I'm juggling 4 fanfictions at the same time so give me a break if the updates are all over the place****.**

**Again, updates will be irregular. I plan to finish this story within the year.**

**Review, favorite and follow please.**


	2. Mysteries

**Chapter 1: Mysteries**

**WARNING: This story may contain traces of: spoilers, tortures, memory loss, magical spells, semi-AU after fifth year, swords, powerful spells, badly written but still very awesome duels, rambling author notes and anime ****references. Engage at your discretion.**

**THE OTHER WARNING: This author is currently very busy and suffers from severe cases of bad humor. Take the WARNING seriously, just not the author in general.**

* * *

"You've been trying since I was a baby," Harry drawled. "And I'm still here."

"Not for long," Voldemort sneered before sending a curse at Harry. Voldemort was infuriated. To think, a child had defeated him and had continued to thwart his attempts at getting rid of the brat repeatedly.

Harry ducked the curse before firing one of his own. The two enemies traded curses and hexes at each other, each one closely missing the opponent. Two of their wayward spells had collided, the force sending them back. When they looked up, they saw Albus Dumbledore, standing there in his brightly colored robes and long white beard.

"You should not have come here Tom," Dumbledore spoke as he casually strolled towards them.

"Don't call me by that filthy muggle name," Voldemort hissed; not many knew of his true heritage, and he had gone through great lengths to rid himself of that disgusting name he thought himself when he was still just a child, not knowing how common it was.

"It is your name Tom," Dumbledore said. "No matter how much you wish it wasn't."

As Voldemort seethed, Dumbledore just stared at him; he didn't even bother giving Harry a glance as he focused on Voldemort. Not wanting him to be dragged into this.

"You're a meddling old fool Dumbledore," Voldemort said. "And that will be your downfall."

Dumbledore said nothing as he raised his wand; he fired a curse at Voldemort, thus engaging him into a battle. Harry, for his part, stood still as he looked at the two. Slightly awed at the amount of power the two wizards are giving off. They are both great wizards, but he could almost see another person that could duel Voldemort into even more terrifyingly great heights.

Dumbledore used water to vanish the snake of fire that Voldemort had created, fiery and magnificent. With only a swish of his wand Dumbledore turned the water drops into crystal and sent them towards Voldemort like little arrows. Rather than allowing his body to be pierced, Voldemort evaporated into mist before melting right before their eyes.

"Harry, are you alright?" The concern was evident in Dumbledore's tone. Harry don't trust his voice any more than he trust his mind at the moment, he was sure it would come out hollow and rasped.

Before either one could say anything else, a strange wind blew through the room, lifting crystal dust off the floor. The dust blew towards Harry and both he and Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at it suspiciously when the dust rose off the ground and seemed to wrap around Harry like a blanket, in an almost comforting way. His body convulsed like the effect of the Cruciatus Curse before he fell to his hands and knees. His body twitched and pained moans could be heard from him. Then, Harry became still.

Dumbledore took a step towards him, intent of seeing if the boy was fine but before he could get any nearer, Harry rolled over on his side to face him.

"You're a fool old man," Harry's voice was cold and silky with a slight hissing tone to it,"And you're going to lose."

"I think not Tom," Dumbledore replied softly. "It is you that shall lose."

"There are things in play that you have no knowledge of," Voldemort hissed, a smirk adorning Harry's face, sadistic and cruel. "Things that shall be the cause of your downfall."

"Leave Harry at once Tom," Dumbledore's voice still held the soft tone to it, but a panicky and angry edge is now present, almost like a father reprimanding his naughty child but quickly losing his patience.

"You were foolish to think that this boy could beat me," Voldemort spoke.

Dumbledore ignored him and leaned closer to Harry's body; by this time, the others had made their way into the Atrium and stood watching the scene in horrified fascination.

"Harry," Dumbledore whispered. "It is not how alike you are that matters, but how different you are."

Harry's body convulsed again before he looked up at Dumbledore. His eyes moved to the others behind him and his gaze ran over them.

Neville was looking at him, fear and hope in his eyes, with his wand clutched tight in his hands, he had blood running down his chin from a wound on his forehead, but other than that, he looked unhurt.

Ginny was holding her left arm to her chest and seemed to be leaning against her brother. Her eyes held pain, fear and mortification.

Hermione was in Tonks' arms, her head resting on her shoulder and her eyes was filled with confusion and worry, wanting to run to his best friend if not for the bleeding gashes.

Luna was standing besides Neville and for the first time since he met her, Harry didn't see the ever present dazed look in her eyes, he saw that they were clear and bright and they held slight determination in them, to help him.

Harry's eyes drifted to Dumbledore and saw the increasing worry and carefully masked panic beneath the sadness. He brought up every happy memory and flimsy Occlumency shields that's more like hard candy he managed to conjure in Snape's lessons, it's almost like banishing a dementor living inside him. His eyes cleared.

"You're weak," Harry said, his voice was clear of Voldemort's. "And you will fall; your reign is coming to an end and your own actions will cause your downfall; you seek the same as that which you are trying to destroy and it will never happen."

An image flashed across Harry's mind, which caused a small smile to appear on his face. "True loyalty is not something you know and I pity you. You have no idea of the power of true friends or unconditional love and worship."

Another image flashed and this image brought a surprise gasp from Harry; the emotion that came with it was strong and it was enough to cause Voldemort to leave; his body jerked as the mist escaped his body before forming the solid form of Voldemort just a few feet away.

He whispered, "Love are a foolish emotion, but a most needed one. I have experienced. And I hate it with a passion. Because if it weren't for love, there will be no Lord Voldemort."

He spared a glance to Dumbledore, before flicking his wand. A jet of wind and water caught everyone unawares, knocking them off their feet and crashing to the floor.

"And now, you die, Harry Potter." He raised his wand high above him, and muttered the killing curse.

The floo flared again, but no one came out, only a shadow. Harry noticed, but did not call out for help. He couldn't move his body, he was hopeless. He's going to die.

Two bright chains snapped towards him. One twisting its way around Voldemort's raised wand arm, and flung him away. The second snaked its way around Harry's torso, lifting him up and securing him in one of the atrium's alcoves, wrapping around him like a mother's embrace.

It only took Voldemort a moment to see his attacker. Long greasy hair, black robes, pale skin, elegant fingers where blue and violet magic flared, completely wandless but power cackled viciously around him. Making Dumbledore's magic pale in comparison.

"Good evening, my lord," The last two words was a sarcastic mocking, spat out brutally from his lips. Voldemort let out a loud snarl. How dare he! To finally reveal his true colors after deceiving him after all this time! How dare Snape, of all people, where _his_ eyes.

Severus Snape nodded his head, his black gaze sweeping around the atrium, confirming that at least most of his students are alive and well.

"Santen Kesshun." A whispered command, a flick of a finger, a widening of crimson eyes. Triangular orange shields expanded across his fallen comrades, not caring but fearing for Voldemort's reaction.

He inclined his head at the Dark Lord, almost wanting to chuckle at his reaction. He always had the most ammusing facial expressions growing up. He gave a mocking bow to the man he supposedly served. knowing soon enough the curtain will be drawn on his life.

Hopefully, Snape could anger Voldemort enough that he would kill him the second he has the chance. Because if he is indeed captured and tortured, the glamour he wore for almost three decades would eventually fall.

He shook his head, pulsed his magic, and charged, curses and hexes already flung towards the shocked and angry Dark Lord.

_Let the final act commence._

* * *

**A/N: The Twins of Misfortune thing reference could be found if consulted Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles, the part that tells Fai's history. Which is also where I got the name. Not that long this chapter, but the length will get longer as time went on. **

**There will be various kido spells in this story. I got obssesed into bleach so I have to use it. A show is power you know. hope you understand.**

**Updates will be irregular. I plan to finish this story within the year.**

**Review, favorite and follow please. Please!**


	3. Check

**Chapter 2: Check**

**WARNING: This story may contain traces of: spoilers, tortures, memory loss, magical spells, semi-AU after fifth year, swords, powerful spells, badly written but still very awesome duels, rambling author notes and anime ****references. Engage at your discretion.**

**THE OTHER WARNING: This author is currently very busy and suffers from severe cases of bad humor. Take the WARNING seriously, just not the author in general.**

* * *

_What am I suppose to do? He is there, right there! I should have known, I should have seen it. That battle at the Department of Mysteries, those magic, I've been such a fool!_

_You should not worry so Master Fai, he will return to your side. You need not dwell on that._

_But I hurt him, I tortured him, I almost killed him. And for what? A chance to confirm that the brother that I have searched for half a century was not who I thought he was?_

_"You didn't know. You are just confirming what you suspected. You needed to break his glamour. He's a master at trickery. He'll understand._

_I promised I would never hurt him. I promised when that twinkling old bastard decided to rip him away from me._

_You must trust him Fai, he'll forgive you. He'll listen._

_He would know it is me. He would know I am the one that shouted those curses that made waterfalls and swimming pools of his blood._

_He'll listen Fai. He'll listen, and when he does, he would be with you again._

_Even if he will, he would never forgive me. He would never become what he wanted to be. To be the Half-Blood Prince he always wanted to be._

_Willingly at least, Master Fai._

_Willingly?_

_If he won't listen, if he won't forgive. Then at least make him forget._

_Forget?_

_Severus Snape would just be a forgotten memory then._

_And Kai would be back._

_Yes, then Kai would be home._

* * *

Snape closed his eyes, knowing that the pain was going to come. He knew it so well that at first, it hardly affected him. The feeling of needles being pushed into every follicle of his skin, forcing his heart to beat faster and his muscles to spasm, no matter how hard he tried to control them.

He had worked so hard to become immune to the effects of this curse...but he knew the longer he struggled, the harder it would become. Voldemort was determined to make him scream—Snape was determined to make him wait. He would never give in.

The pain became more and more intense. He started to count. He needed to keep some aspect of control. Control had always been his ally—it had allowed him to survive this long.

If he had not been so good at control, he would have broken so many years ago.

_One._

One. He had always just been one. The moment it had seemed like he was going to find someone else to share his life with, she had run away from him. The moment he had found someone else to share his life with, he had been fooled and had run away from him. Everyone left him behind. The needles were being pushed in deeper, he had to keep counting.

_Two._

How he had always wished for a partner. Someone to rely on. But that dependency had brought him tears—he had become so close to Dumbledore that when the connection had been ripped apart, he had felt something. Pain that was nowhere near to what he was feeling now. Was it worse? Was it better? He wasn't sure. Then again, indecision came with torture. It weakened the will.

He used to have a partner, a twin, an older brother to carry and comfort him when the voices got too much. It was sad really, that the only family he has left would choose power before him. Maybe he just wasn't worth it after all.

_Three._

It felt as though the needles were heating up, driving acid and lava through his veins. His heart was pounding faster than he thought it possible; he was gasping as he was unable to get oxygen into his lungs.

_Four._

And suddenly he was cold. Unbearably cold. He was shivering, unable to generate heat, hating the fact that the sweat on his forehead was running into his tightly squeezed eyes—and he was unable to wipe it away.

_Five._

He slumped to the ground, landing on one of his mangled hands. An explosion of pain which caused him to wince, tears springing to his eyes as he felt the bones crush against the stone floor. He tried to move off his hand, but his body suddenly felt heavy, like a dead weight.

_Six._

He wanted to get to ten. He needed to get to ten. He wasn't counting seconds—had it been ten minutes? His mind wasn't sure any more. He was losing the capacity to think. If he lost thinking, he wouldn't be able to control his mouth. And he would not scream.

Even if it killed him, he would not scream.

_Seven._

The pain was intense. He drove his teeth into his bottom lip, delighted when blood covered his tongue, as it gave him something else to focus on. The taste of the blood was metallic, stinging his throat—and then there were the needles again. They were more like knives now.

_Eight._

His body was floundering. He was holding on but only just. He was drowning, the surface was there, but the more he kicked, the deeper he fell.

_Hold on, Severus. Don't you dare give him what he wants. This is not him! This is not him!_

_Nine._

Reverting to mental stimulation helped.

_Think about something. For your sake, just think about something. Anything._

_Ten._

His mind was sluggish, slow to react. It didn't want to do what he wanted. Yes, he was thinking, but he was thinking about bad things. Fai's stone faced crying. That was not what he wanted!

_Eleven. _

He couldn't bear it any longer. His body felt like it was falling apart. He couldn't feel his feet, he was shivering and burning, still and gasping. He was the centre of paradoxes, brought on by this cruel curse and his crueller master. He needed a relief.

_For Earth's sake, why won't you kill me? Please kill me! Why can't I die?_

_Please stop! Why are you doing this! Stop this! Why!_

He had lost count. What number was he on? No. He couldn't lost control. He needed control!

_Please kill me._

He couldn't remember, he didn't know what number came next, no, he needed to hang on...

_Won't you please kill me? I want to die!_

_I WANT TO DIE!_

_FAI!_

* * *

_"I'll take it all."_

Harry put a comforting hand on top of Hermione's shaking arm. He couldn't help but blame himself. He was an idiot, a stupid little idiot that wouldn't listen to an adult. Hungry for information, even going as far as trusting Lord bloody Voldemort's vision. When had he became so trusting and so gullible?

It was all his fault.

It was his fault that Sirius had died. It was his fault that Professor Snape had to blow his cover and magic to help them escape the pandemonium that was the ministry atrium. It was his help that he couldn't move an inch to help. It was his fault that his tongue wouldn't work to stop the man when he said he would take all of the tortures set out for him and _his_ friends.

It was his fault that the only person in his unchanging life was stuck on the other side of the damp cell. Refusing to scream a song with Voldemort's curses and Bellatrix's high laughter.

The only he could do was to offer a hand to comfort Hermione as she tries to shut out the noise with her shaking hands over her ears. She respected the man and had told Ron and Harry more than once to shut their trap about Snape, it is not everyday you get to meet the youngest Potions Master of a century.

Harry winced as Bellatrix fired off another spout of laughter, he could see Neville fold even more into himself. Desperately trying to stop the memories of his mother and father, eyes empty and moving sluggishly in St Mungo's, all thanks to the two people next door, flinging curses at the professor he never liked.

All three of them wanted this to be over, but all three of them knew this is just the beginning.

With a dull thud, the screams and curses stopped, there were more taunting words and a cheerful see-you-tomorrow from a more than insane mass murderer. There was a fair bit of rattling of rusty chains on even rustier floors, before the stone slab that separated them dissolved.

Harry desperately wanted to see the damage the two star-crossed lovers of torture and murder had inflicted upon his third least liked professor. But there was no way in all of hell and realms beyond that could have prepared him for this.

There was blood _god the blood! _Blood was everywhere. Dripping down the walls, forming pools around the room, already turning brown and hard to see on the black robes the figure on the ground was wearing. Harry moved closer, bringing the other two with him, until he was close enough to see the potions Master's body and face, before getting the breath knocked out of him.

This is not Severus Snape.

The man, or more like teenager about to step into adulthood, was absolutely nothing like Snape. Harry paid no mind to the two sharp breaths drawn by the two people that unfortunately got tangled into this mess along with him. Where the hell is Snape?

The boy – man – teenager – in Snape's customary and blood stained robes looked around the age of the Auror Nymphadora Tonks. Paper white skin that almost glowed against the darkness of the cell, illuminating the crimson stains that painted the walls.

Long fingered hand no longer stained with residue potions. Gone the harsh lines and sallow skin and the kanky greasy hair the dungeon bat was so famous for. There is a delicate pattern of intricate purple and blue shadows that made half-moon masks over his eyes, water marks on paper. His hair was long, pulled back into a high ponytail with a black ribbon with thick bangs that fell into his eyes and the rest up to his waist, tainted scarlet by the week torches light and pooling blood.

His face is handsome, better looking than even Tom Riddle in his youth and just as dark. Thinner than death on a diet. "Professor? Professor Snape," Harry croaked. This cannot be Snape, he refused to believe this is Snape, this has to be another one of those mind trick Voldemort is so found of! "Professor?" He called again.

He stirred, disturbing the chains and the blood pools and cracking open his eyes, it was open no bigger than slits, but it was enough for Harry. They were black, cold black eyes that could be found on where else but on the Potions Master, black eyes he had stared defiantly up more than he could count, more than he could remember actually.

The same pair of eyes that narrowed in fury, in annoyance. Widened in disbelief, in shock. Broken is silent screams and unspoken agony. Soft in amusement, in content. Forever cold in indifference, in death.

Harry still refused to believe this is Snape, how could one change so much in so little time? Those eyes are like black tunnels, never ending, daring anyone to see through them and step foot on the other side. Snape twitched his hand, as if wanting for them to take it, actually wanting to give them an explanation.

With just a small amount of hesitation, all three of them inserted their grimy, tear stained and shaking hands into Snape's long fingered one. There was a small hiss of magic that spawn through the room.

And all four of them succumbed to unconsciousness.

* * *

**A/N: The plot, if there is any here, thickens. Reference to Snape's new appearance could be noted as Shin Hyuga Shiang.**

**I actually do have a Snape fighting Voldemort thing from last chapter and another Don't Move hostage thing as well. But not posting it because 1) Too difficult to write and 2)it kind of makes you wondering what happened and what might have happened. I am updating a lot, our school has good computers. This should be the last one in a while.**

**Updates will be irregular. I plan to finish this story within the year.**

**Review, favorite and follow please. Please!**


	4. Kai

**Chapter 3: Kai**

**WARNING: This story may contain traces of: spoilers, tortures, memory loss, magical spells, semi-AU after fifth year, swords, powerful spells, badly written but still very awesome duels, rambling author notes and anime ****references. Engage at your discretion.**

**THE OTHER WARNING: This author is currently very busy and suffers from severe cases of bad humor. Take the WARNING seriously, just not the author in general.**

**And now we finally step foot into the quagmire that is AU.**

* * *

_Where the hell am I?_

That was the first question that flitted through Harry Potter's mind. The second question was _What is this place?_ And the third was_ Is that Snape?_

He had been expecting a totally different setting. A cell in Voldemort's dark dungeons, a filthy room in an even filthier house, Dumbledore's eccentric office, even the Azkaban with the dementors! But no way in all the nine realms could he ever even think about this place. Wherever this place is.

It's beautiful. A hundred times better than Hogwarts, the Burrows and all the places he had been combined. It was grand, magnificent, homey and just wonderful in every sense of the word. The sense of family was tangible in the air. Even in memory the sense of belonging was so strong it started to suffocate him.

Then he knew.

This is hell.

The comfort oozed from the walls, wrapping around him, choking him. He could hear his mother's laughter, his father's playful howl, Sirius' gruffly tone, Remus' soft story telling cadence, Dumbledore's twinkling smile, Mrs Weasley's overly concerned berating, his two best friends' teasing arguments. He could hear the voice of every person he ever cared about, calling for him.

He wanted to go to them, to tell them he is all right, that he is fine, that he would always be right here. But, even in memory, he knew he couldn't, he knew he couldn't go to them, that soon there will be even more voices searching for him.

Then the voices turned mocking, turned vicious, turned cold. He could hear his mother screaming as the killing curse hit her body, his father telling her run, Remus' hungry howl as he tore a claw through Snape's chest, Sirius' unspoken goodbye and apology as he fell through the Veil, his classmate's whispering him as a liar a cheat an attention seeker and his friends angry bickers and always forcing him to choose sides between them.

The good and the bad, the frantic warmth and the bitter cold clashed together in a never ending war. It tugged at his mind, shredding and tearing through every resolve he may have left, almost leaving him a broken and teary mess on the memory floor.

He wonders of the voices are different to everyone.

It took every flimsy shield he created during Occlumency to half shut the voices out. When he could finally turn them into soft static at the back of his mind, he turned his gaze to the little boy by the window, reading a book and all too comfortable with his own company.

The sill was lined with glass jars, filled with a flower he had never seen before. There was no leaf on the stem. It was red, blood red, with petals that were like those webs spiders always spin diligently morning noon and night. There were strange flowers, and Harry could sense the hidden meaning behind them.

The boy was not that different to the person he had last seen on the floor of Lord Voldemort's dungeon, half swimming in his blood. Except younger, shorter, hair less long and without the watermark lines that formed a mask around his eyes. The eyes were still the same, black, cold and unfeeling; Harry wonders if they would ever change.

_"Reading again, Prince?" A voice sounder behind Harry, when he spun around, he had to suppress his urge to pull out his wand and shout the worse curse he knew, not that he had his wand._

_The boy that stood behind harry was a few inches taller than Snape, shoulder length black hair, bangs falling into his crimson violet eyes. Handsome, almost identical looking to the Snape that sat next to the window. Except where Snape often carried himself with only confidence and detachment, the boy held himself with a thick air of arrogance and cruelty._

_The boy looked so much like the teenage-memory he has seen in the Chamber of Secrets, as if the crimson swimming in those violet eyes was any less of an indication._

_This boy was undoubtedly Tom Marvolo Riddle_

_Snape merely quirked an eyebrow at Riddle, his black eyes never leaving the battered book he was holding in his elegant hands._

_"Still has not find another way to occupy your time?" Young Tom began to toss up and down a fiery red ball, sitting himself in front of Snape, as if wandless magic was just a normal, everyday occurrence to him._

_"I reached number 61 this morning, I see no reason to go higher and exhaust myself further," even at this young age, Snape still has that silky voice of his that gave the opening speech in Harry's first potions class that scared everything out of everyone._

_Tom sighed tiredly, "You should not go even that far, you were on number 50 yesterday were you not?"_

_Snape nodded his head slightly and turned a page, giving no explanation on what 'number 50' and 'number 61' meant. Something to do with spells, or perhaps books?_

_Tom sighed again, and pulled Snape's head into his arms, never minding the book squashed in between them, "You need to stop this Kai, you've been getting even less sleep than usual. You can't just tire yourself so much that you fell asleep in your food to block those voices out. "_

The show of concern was too strange for Harry to comprehend. But for some reason it doesn't seem out of place when a teenage Voldemort was hugging a changed form of Severus Snape. It felt right, like it is the supposed way of doing things. They are like a family, Tom was like a brother, a concerned big brother that worries over his little brother's sleeping habits.

A brother...

Slower than it should have taken his rarely used brain should process, Harry Potter connected the dots.

_Kai... and... Fai..._

The scene shifted, and he was at a completely different setting, a quite familiar setting. He was at school, with the younger version of potions professor Snape, rather than the Kai he had just seen. It was midday, he was at Hogwarts, watching Snape skip stones into the great lake, with a flower named lily.

_Lily was as radiant as he had seen in the memory during his last Occulumency lessons, albeit younger. Her red-gold hair flaming in the wind, brilliant green eyes narrowed in thought and concentration as she attempted to beat Snape at skipping stones, and perhaps something else._

_"I don't get it Sev," She almost pouted as she said this, her school robes blanketing her as she flapped down on the bank._

_Snape chuckled, as if knowing the reason behind the pouting Lily, but still asked, "What?"_

_"How you can be so good at everything! Charms, Transfiguration, Astronomy, DADA, especially Potions. Tell me Sev!" The almost pout turned full force, it was strange and very adorable, making Harry almost go up to Snape and demand the answer himself, not he could, or wouldn't._

_Snape did see the pout but overall ignored it, making Lily pout even more, "I have secrets Lils, I guess that's just another one," His black eyes glinted, indirectly hinted the conversation needs to be over. Harry gathered that Snape and his mother were friends before the disastrous event of their fifth year._

_Friends, maybe perhaps something more. Lily is always a wonderful person, by what everyone else had told him. Oddly, it didn't make him feel ill when he first considered it. It's comforting, to think that Snape might have had a good period of the time before everything came crashing down. If that story was to be believed. _

_"Secrets?" There is a curious gleam in Lily's eyes, very much like the gleam in Hermione's eyes when she found something new to be read or found out about. Harry learned to detect that gleam, it is merely a choice between freedom and endlessly hours stuck inside the library. "Is that why you are so cold? To guard them?"_

_Hurt and pain flashed in Snape's eyes, before he immediately put an iron clamp upon it, "I learnt along ago the it was better to be cold than to feel the elements, even the pleasant ones." He gave Lily a thin smile that Harry is sure would never reach his eyes._

_Lily smiled hesitantly back, as if knowing the reason he froze his heart. If the story Hermione read to them that night after she received the book via owl post was true, then a frozen heart would be the best choice of protection. She placed a hand on top of Snape's, a comforting way of saying _I understand_._

_Harry smiled, compared to Snape, Harry's suffering had been minuscule, even in memory, the voices almost drove him mad beyond recognition.  
_

_Snape smiled again, his black eyes warming up slightly at the touch, of someone other than his brother actually caring for him._

_"Thank you Lily," He whispered._

_A puzzled expression, an indication of head, "For what?" Before Snape could answer Lily dragged herself up, as if before a huge lake was the most comfortable place in the world, "Come on Sev! I'm gonna beat you to the castle this time!" She took off running, hair making a flaming red flag behind her and his robes getting in his way._

_Snape chuckled openly, and chased after her._

The scene blurred and shifted into another.

_A new day dawned in Snape's memory, waking up the hundred of students that lived and learned at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the house elves were bustling around the kitchen, preparing another hearty breakfast. The teachers were sweeping up lesson plans and stray parchments, half of them not looking forward to face the dunderheadedness of another day of dunderheaded students._

_It was a different Hogwarts than what Harry had known, younger and perhaps fresher, but it always had a feeling of home that he would do anything to have._

_In a flash the day shifted, pulling Harry away from watching the beautiful sunrise Hogwarts always received from the sky, and found himself in Minerva McGonagall's Transfiguration class, watching third years turn branches into drapes or curtains, or blankets if you want to stretch McGonagall's patience. Almost all of the students were struggling. All, except for two._

_James Potter was turning his branch into drapes and back again and repeating the process, desperately trying to catch the disgusted eye of one Lily Evans with a wicked wink every couple of seconds. Showing off his genius at Transfiguration and daring anyone else to steal his place as the Lord of the Transformation with the Biggest Ego of Them All as Harry had heard Sirius mutter darkly while he jabbed his wand around and tried to pluck Pettigrew's eye out._

_"Yes Padfoot, James is the Lord of TBETA, but he is the prince of everything!" Pettigrew shot back, almost fearfully. James' face fell from a sick beaming mess to a dark scowl that could make Lucius Malfoy hide behind Voldemort's robes as the nearest refuge._

_Harry followed the watery gaze of Pettigrew, the murderous scowl of James, the curious eyes of Lupin and the don't know what-to-think expression of Sirius, to find a not surprising but still astonishing sight of a young man's magic._

_The tree branch was suspended in mid hair, changing into drapes and blankets and towels no sane mothers would ever buy for actual use. There was a violet crane like symbol on a black mask that quickly flashed into a large raven with sleek and sharp midnight black feathers flying with a full moon, then again turned to a silvery white doe against a forest of yew and ebony._

_The pictures were moving through each other, the raven was the most noticeable, sometimes popped next to the doe, stay for a cup of tea and popped back out of existence again._

_Snape was the same as always, black eyes shone behind that thick curtain of greasy hair, quill pen scribbling madly upon a battered potions textbook, how in Merlin's polka dotted hats did a third year gotten a sixth year book was simply a part of the top ten in Harry's Things I Do Not Want To Know About Ever. Snape must be pretty distracted with his sarcastic comments and potions improvements to notice the three foot tree branch that is right above his head!_

_McGonagall smirked slightly, letting loose a few wisps of hair from her tight bun that escaped its restraining hold with her shaking of head, and focused back to giving the answer of proper wand movements to Frank Longbottom about a particular Transfiguration hex that she was pretty sure only two people in this year level is going to understand._

_James Potter shooked his head enviously, his scaring-Lucius-Malfoy-to-hide-behind-Voldemort scowl lessening slightly on his good looking face._

_"Prince indeed."_

There is a soft snap in Harry's mind, and the memory moved on. Another came, another snap. In the glimpses he could make out, he knew they were mostly childhood memories, maybe even teenage ones as well, only some he could see an adult Snape in his black robes with too many buttons. He saw plenty of the young boy Kai, and most of them had Fai in them.

But what's going on? He tried to stop the memories from flowing past, to get one to hold still so he could see something else.

"Don't fight it Potter. Let them flow. You can view them whenever you wish later," a silky voice sounded behind him. When he whirled around, there stood Kai. Long hair and thick bangs that fell into his black eyes, handsome face and voluminous robes Snape loved to go billowing around Hogwarts in.

"Sir?"

"Most of what the story said was true, we are brothers, we are abandoned by our parents. That place did exist. But the king taking only me part was were he wrote it wrong," A mirthless chuckle, empty and hollow and surprisingly very Snape-like.

"Him, sir?" Uncertainty, afraid to ask delicate questions.

"Fai, Tom, Voldemort. Whatever you want to call him. He wrote the story to make everyone believe about us. We both held different versions of what happened that day. It's very different to say who is right." A contemplating look, thoughtful confusion in his black eyes.

"Who do you think is right, sir?"

"Who is to say. I gave solving that a long time ago. I believe I am in the right, but unless proven wrong, we shall see. I guess it is up to you, a Gryffindor that completely ignore his head and everything inside it, to figure it out."

"Sir, I don't..."

"Am I wrong, Mr Potter?" There's an undertone of amusement in his cold voice, somehow a lot colder when he is Kai and not Snape. A lot more empty and hollow and feels like it could rip your skin right off your bones if you touch it.

"Good luck then, Harry Potter." This is the first time he had called Harry's first name without any sort of an insult or remark on his father or just family in general. There's an inclination of head, and everything faded to grey, then finally to black.

When Harry regained his consciousness, he's in the cell again. The blood on the wall and floor are turning brown and started to flake. He could see a shell shocked Hermione and a mortified but slightly confused Neville. They had seen what Snape wanted them to see, to understand. But when Harry searched for the forth occupant of the dungeon cell in the grey-orange light dawn is so found of giving, he came up blank.

Kai is not here.

* * *

**A/N: The plot, if there is any here, thickens. **

**I know some of you will be very confused with the Kai/Snape, Voldemort/Tom/Fai thing, as it will get even more confusing later on, I will unravel the yarn for you. ****Whenever you use Snape, it will be referring to the man with the greasy hair and the sallow skin and potion stained fingers. Kai will be the young adult with the really long hair and handsome face. Same thing with Voldy, and I will give all of you reading some warning when they change their appearances. Anymore things about that concept will be explained later on.**

**Reference of their appearance see Code Geass' Lelouch Lamperouge and Shin Hyuga Shiang. I love that anime down to tiny bits and pieces that are probably no bigger than plant cells.**

**Updates will be irregular. I plan to finish this story within the year.**

**Review, favourite and follow please. Please!**


	5. Thread

**Chapter 4: Thread**

**WARNING: This story may contain traces of: spoilers, tortures, memory loss, magical spells, semi-AU after fifth year, swords, powerful spells, badly written but still very awesome duels, rambling author notes and anime ****references. Engage at your discretion.**

**THE OTHER WARNING: This author is currently very busy and suffers from severe cases of bad humour. Take the WARNING seriously, just not the author in general.**

**Now we finally step foot into the quagmire that is AU, and the bashing of Albus Dumbledore.**

* * *

_Forgive me Kai._

He knew, yet he refused to believe it. He refused to believe the truth and instead fired curse after curse, hoping and wishing Snape would remain Snape and not some glamour created by someone else.

Obviously, he did not get his wish.

He was the last one to leave the cell, but the first one to see the edge of a glamour cracking. He had stayed to watch, and closed the door behind him quietly when Kai is done.

It was beautiful really, to see the edges erode away into something else. It started down, travelling up, revealing the face he had longed to see and staggered to believe, after all this time. He is right there.

Kai's face didn't change much with time. They lost that youthfulness his black eyes heavily contrasted. He knew that if he were to open them, the eyes would still be the black coals that had never before seen innocence. His hair was longer than he remembered, the crimson sheen when put under the light is still there. The only remarkably different is those watermark blue and violet lines underneath his eyes, but he payed it no mind. First came shock, then relief, then guilt.

The guilt came crashing into him, suffocating him, blanketing his every other emotion he has felt when he saw the glamour fade. It was so strong he could not even manage to glance at the slumped form of Kai without having the weight of the world pressing down upon him.

How long had he known Snape? He was seventeen when he joined his Death Eater ranks. The youngest Potions Master of this century. With his sarcastic remarks and elegant fingers he had brewed countless potions for his lord. From pain relievers to common poisons to even replicating the effects of the Cruciatus Curse. Severus Snape had done it all.

His knowledge of the Dark Arts could almost rival his own. He had created spells, potions, even devices on how better to incapacitate someone. There is power in him, great power that Snape had put an iron cover on, wandless magic came almost naturally to him. So why had he not realized it before?

Snape is just too good of an actor.

He shifted the weight in his arms, careful not to disturb him. It had taken every ounce of self control he had not to pull out his wand and end the Potter brat right there and then. But he opted to kick him, the mudblood and the sorry excuse of a Longbottom back to the end wall, and picking up what he really came here for.

Kai was light, too light for someone of his height. Voluminous black robes hiding how thin he really was. He carried his brother more times than he can count. Often he fell asleep beside a windowsill with a book and a vase of spider lilies. Other times passed out from the tormenting voices that always flitted through the ways. All of those times, it is up to him to carry Kai back to that pile of mattress that is their sleeping beds.

Ironic. Snape could block out the greatest Legilimens of all times, while Kai couldn't even stop listening to the voices of their bastard parents.

The room is fit for a prince, or a prisoner depended on your perspective. He was never a healer, always preferred to silence a bleeding someone or other with an Avada Kedaverra than taking the time to make sure they survived. But now, he would be damned if he let Kai die because of the damage he caused, if he weren't already,

He could hear Nagini slither into the room, wanting to see the Half-Blood Prince he had heard so much about in the yearws she had spent with him. A curious snake, and a deadly snake.

Kai rarely disappoints anyone.

As he worked, with Nagini by his side, offering up whatever suggestion she could, his mind began to drift. Drifting and stopping at every memory he has of the only family he has left. Chronologically he tried to relive everything, until his mind drifted to somewhere he doesn't want to remember.

That night, where he is still Fai and Kai is still Kai, the wizard came. A curious wizard, with a grandfatherly appearance and concerned kindness. They were stunned, he recognized the gleam in the man's eyes only seconds before it happened.

When he reacted, Kai was half way out the door.

_The man was tall, with a long white beard tucked into his belt, disgusting coloured robes and hat, with a forever twinkle in his sky blue eyes, they could see it, the man is a powerful wizard, perhaps even more powerful than them. Though at that time they had no idea how much better they are._

_The man introduced himself as Albus Dumbledore._

_He knew something was wrong then, but he did not react, he did not say anything. He did not invite Dumbledore in, but he did not ask him to leave either. Perhaps if he did, then none of anything would have happened._

_Kai was sitting near the doorway Dumbledore had created. Reading another book and fidgeting with another spider lily, turning the flower into different shades of red, only looking up when the old man came crashing through. How had he found this place is anyone's guesses._

_There is a curious gleam in both pair of eyes. One calculating. The other held a hungry look, as if the their heart's desire had finally came true, dismissing Fai as no more than a random vermin, a predator's gaze, a mad scientist's gaze._

_It then happened so fast, one second Dumbledore was standing in front of him, blue eyes devouring in the sight of their dwelling, the next Kai was halfway out of the door the old man had created. Caught off guard, Fai had no time to put up a shield or yell out a spell._

_Kai was begging, pleading and yelling an weeping at Dumbledore. Kai never cried, his black eyes would always suppressed every tear that threatened to fall. Emotions are what drives Fai to his way of greatness, emotions are what hinders Kai, making him a sad moping mess on the floor. They had long since stopped arguing about it._

_Kai tore a hand away from Dumbledore's grasp, yelling and screaming for his brother to save him. Fai leaped from his perch, his hair flying behind him, he could reach Kai's hand, he could save him, he would save him!_

_The strands of magic that were keeping them in that prison was strong, too strong, they latched onto Fai's flying figure, not allowing him to leave, pulling him back, and without another powerful magic source, it was useless. The magic of the prison pulled him back, not allowing him to leave. In the end, he couldn't grab that hand._

_The broken door sealed shut, locking Fai back in. He could still hear Kai's screams, Albus Dumbledore's demanding voice. He pounded on the door, on the blank slab of the wall where Kai had disappeared off to. He banged and smashed and howled himself hoarse. He could hear Kai's cries, his yells, but his brother was powerless to stop that bastard._

_He had never felt so much rage before, his magic still isn't strong enough to break through the walls and wards surrounding the prison. He had never felt so helpless, so alone. He hoped Kai would be happy, to finally see the world outside with his own eyes and not through battered books. He just wished it would be him to show Kai the world._

_If Kai was happy where he was, then Fai could be content too. He could live with that._

_Then the pain started._

_At first it was nothing too bad, just bruises that appeared out of no where, angry red marks on his legs and arms. There was nothing sharp in the prison, the builders don't want suicide to be an option. He started to pound on the sealed door again._

_Then the world shook on its hinges, the amount of magic released was astronomical, the pain and the hurt and the pure emotions was so much that even Fai passed out._

_When he came to, he couldn't fell Kai anymore._

_Twins are rare in the wizarding world. They share a unique connection, no matter where they are, the would always fell each other. The connection could only be broken if one of them had greeted death, drained their magical core. Or has done something so vile and so far gone from humanity there is no more hope of them returning._

_There was no connection, no thread, everything was gone._

_He refused to believe Kai was dead, so he broke out and searched._

_The rest as they say, are history._

Everyone looks younger when they are asleep.

Kai looked younger, younger than his reach age, and more vulnerable as well. In sleep, his black eyes were not present to stare into your soul and dig out your secrets. It was frightening really, to have such an old pair of eyes on someone so young, at least it was the case before.

The guilt lessened slightly, it is heart warming, to see Kai sleeping there like nothing had changed. Forgiveness is an unnerving thought, but as Nagini had said, if Kai won't listen, won't forgive. He could make him forget.

He is after all, the greatest wizard of all times. When Kai regains consciousness, when Kai is finally home, they would give this wretched world the kings it deserves.

But before that, Dumbledore is going to die.

_Ah, Kai's awake._

* * *

**A/N: The plot continues to thickens. **

**Lets think of it this way: Dumbledore, with his thrice damned curiosity and desire to experiment and grow even more powerful, kidnapped Kai based on a legend he had heard from Grindlewald, not caring about Fai even though he knew there is a second twin, done a lot curses to make Kai lose control of his magic and nearly died, subsequently causing the two biggest wizarding wars since god knows how many years, may or may not knew that Snape is Kai and manipulating Kai to, on a later date, kill his brother.**

**I'm sorry, I am still going to kill Twinkles. Sorry if that bothers you.**

**Still, read between the lines.**

**Updates will be irregular, but since today term 3 ends and I get a two week holiday, all of the stories I am writing will be updated at least once. I have another Harry Potter story that is set in the Marauder's era that I will get to post very soon. It features a raven and a glamor. I plan to finish this particular story within the year.**

**Review, favourite and follow please. Please!**


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